Reasons To Use A Pen Name For Your Amazon Self-Publishing — And Why Not To
Thinking about writing under a pen name? Some reasons why you may want to … and reasons why you may end up regretting doing so
Pseudonyms — pen names — have long been a popular literary device among authors.
Indeed, today’s crop of indie authors and self-publishers are really spoiled for choice: publishing on Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is not only simplistic to use, you don’t even need to worry about contravening the terms of service (TOS) by publishing under a pen name, or even multiple names. (Translation: it’s fine with Amazon. Yes, really!)
KDP — as the name suggests — is a platform for self-publishing. As the publisher of the works you upload there, you need to register under your actual identity to remain compliant.
However using KDP you can (all without violating their TOS):
- Publish books on behalf of a third party — ie somebody else. When you think about it, this is effectively using KDP in a manner analogous to the way traditional publishers — Penguin et al — operate. This use is uncommon, though.
- Publish books on behalf of your pen name(s). You can even associate the pseudonymed work with an Amazon Author Central account.
Amazon makes publishing under pen names extraordinarily easy.
You can collect royalties from the pseudonymed works just as if they were written under your own byline. Of course this means that Amazon knows who you are. But your readers will have no way of ascertaining that information.
Why would you want to publish under a pen name?
Why might you not want to?
Here are some reasons — offered without judgement as to their merits or legitimacy — for this enduring literary practice.
✅ Why To Publish Under A Pen Name
To shield yourself from haters
A lot of authors who write about controversial subjects choose to do so under a pen name.
These authors do so in order to avoid having to receive hate mail and threats (or cyberstalking) from those who are ticked off by their views.
Authors who might publish under a pen name for this reason might be writing about:
- A political conflict
- A politically charged and divisive issue
- Any other subject that tends to bifurcate readers cleanly into lovers and haters. Think veganism, the Israeli-Arab conflict, the roundness of Planet Earth, etc.
Because, for personal or professional reasons, you don’t want to take credit for the work
Sometimes authors write under pen names because they’re not so keen on publicly endorsing a particular viewpoint — or a set of them.
This reason might apply to authors who don’t quite feel ready to endorse a certain viewpoint because they feel that doing so might have adverse implications in their personal or professional lives.
Don’t want your boss to find out that you’re a popular rom-com fiction author by night? A pen name could provide the degree of anonymity you’re seeking.
Other examples:
- You want to write a book about something that you believe in but which you know your loved ones and family don’t. Maybe you’re a secret vegan in a family full of carnivores and want to pen a book about animal rights without risking ostracization from the clan? In this kind of situation, an author might determine that the most prudent course of action is to use a pen name.
- You’re working for a Democrat-affiliated organization — or a Democrat boss — and you want to write a book that argues for Republican or conservative politics. Sure, your employer mightn’t be supposed to discriminate on political grounds. But do you really feel like taking that risk?
Because you’re testing the waters of publishing
A lot of indie authors and first-time self-publishers will use pen name publishing as a gentle means of easing themselves into the publishing process.
Publishing a book — whether traditionally or over Amazon — is a big step.
For authors who are concerned with developing personal brands, a book is a big affirmation of where they stand on a certain issue — or on what their story represents. It becomes part of your literary record. Something that’s hard to recant.
Books also expose authors to criticism and negative feedback. It’s extremely rare to encounter a popular title on Amazon that hasn’t received at least one scathing review if not a slew of them. If you’re writing on a subject that’s even somewhat controversial, you can expect to encounter readers who don’t like what you have to say or how you say it.
While developing a thick skin might seem like a prerequisite to launching a career as a writer, believe it or not, not all writers have the skin of elephants.
Many will therefore use publishing under a pen name as a means of putting a little bit of distance between themselves and their readers for their very first foray into publishing.
Because it wouldn’t be safe to publish under your real name
One extremely important function which pen names fulfill is enabling whistleblowers and those with important stories to share to be able to do so without risking adverse consequences to their personal safety.
Consider for example:
- A victim of sexual or emotional abuse who wishes to write an anonymous account of (his or her) recovery from abuse without risking identifying either his or her identity or that of the perpetrator
- A whistleblower who wants to lift the lid on malfeasance in an organization which he or she is affiliated with
It’s important to note that publishing under a pen name isn’t carte blanche to defame others.
Remember that Amazon will know your real identity with a good degree of certainty if you’re publishing through KDP.
It’s prudent to put the same care into avoiding defamation when publishing under a pen name as you would if you were publishing using your own byline.
❎ Why Not To Publish Under A Pen Name
Just as there are compelling reasons why to publish under a pen name — and important objectives which pseudonym publishing continues to fulfill for authors — pen name publishing also presents difficulties which authors who chose to publish this way must deal with.
It’s hard to do effective promo for your book
As any book author will tell you, the art of selling a book involves 10% writing and 90% marketing.
When you publish under a pen name it becomes a lot more difficult to do things like:
- Go on podcasts to be interviewed about your book. This is particularly problematic if your pen name is more of a fictitious identity and claims to have a different accent than the one you naturally speak in.
- Speak at panels and authors’ conferences as your pen name. In fact appearing publicly in the character of your pen name is likely to be problematic in any social situation where you might be photographed or recognized.
You don’t get the credit if your book’s a big hit
As a pen name author, there’s a high price to pay for the anonymity that publishing under a pen name affords you.
You’re free to test the waters by publishing under a pen name, but if that test’s a big success then you won’t be able to take credit for the pseudonymed authorship unless you choose to do so.
All of the work and little to none of the potential glory. If you know — or have a strong inkling — that your book is going to be a runaway success, then you may wish to consider your idea of publishing using a pen name.
You run the risk of being doxxed
You might recall that one of the popular reasons for authors to write under pen names is because they are worried of attracting hatred and harassment from those who don’t take kindly to the views espoused in their authorship.
There’s a risk to pen name publishing, however. Keeping your real and pen name identities separated isn’t a perfect science.
For one, many authors are somewhat open about their pen name identities and will tell friends, family, and sometimes even the media about their publishing identities. But the wider you extend your circle of trust the greater the likelihood that somebody is going to spill the beans and out your name.
Many successful pseudonymed authors have had to ultimately take credit for their books — or declare their pseudonyms — after a diligent investigator blue the lid on their alias.
Pen Name Publishing Fulfills An Important Literary Function
Personally, I think it’s tremendous that Amazon makes it so easy to publish under a pen name using KDP.
Pen names — while they undoubtedly have their drawbacks — continue to fulfill a vital function in today’s literary landscape.
They allow rookie authors to assess the reaction to their writing without having to bite their nails raw waiting for the first reviews to percolate in.
They allow abuse victims and whistleblowers to tell their stories in a way that doesn’t compromise their personal safety.
And they shield those writing about controversial topics from having to take ‘heat’ for their views.
You may find some of the use-cases outlined above cowardly.
But for those who employ this device, the pen name is often a powerful and worthwhile stepping-stone that allows aspiring authors to work up the courage to one day take credit for their work — while gently easing them into the process of encountering feedback from real world readers.
For these reasons, and more, I continue to support pen name publishing and commend Amazon for their decision to facilitate this kind of authorship through KDP.
